my marathon training is officially underway. i'm technically now in week #2 of many. i don't know the exact count (though i probably should). not to worry, i really do have this documented somewhere but am too lazy to look it up. i'm mostly following the hal higdon's novice training guide that a few of you suggested to me but stretched out over a few extra weeks to give myself so slack and fit around my travel plans.

it definitely takes quite a bit of discipline. i've never put myself through a such a self-regimented training plan before. so far, fortunately, i think i'm in that sweet spot where it's actually kinda fun and fulfilling without being too burdensome. that's probably because my mileage is still low right now and isn't yet eating up hours of life.

uh, speaking of eating, i'm really chowing down these days. ugh. it's actually quite terrible. i feel like my will power has gone out the window. i guess that's my other motivator for running.

tomorrow's actually my day off from running. also, it being friday, i was planning to reward myself with a trip to fernandez & wells in the morning for the best latte ever. but they only have full fat milk (which is probably a large part of why it's so good). maybe i should consider walking there...

uk banks really really really suck.

too lovely for words...

you'd be hard-pressed to find me with my ipod shuffle. on the tube, on the bus, as i walk, and of course as run, i have music playing in my ear. i like to think that it's the soundtrack to my life. :)

anyway, i've pretty burned through all my existing music and am seeking new tunes. since my last poll worked pretty well, i'm opening up for comments again. what are you listening to now? what's your favorite album in the last 6 months? of all time? recommend me something!

what kind of music do i listen to? well, i'm interested in anything really. i definitely lean towards alternative, indie rock and lately have gotten into more of the folksy, singer-songwriter stuff. but i'm looking for more variety these days so send me anything at all!

if you want to see some specifics, here's my last.fm profile: http://www.last.fm/user/lvchan.

in exchange, i'll let you in on what i've been listening to lately and would highly recommend:
* owl city - ocean eyes. i'm sure you've heard "fireflies" (which i love). but i also a huge fan of "the saltwater room" and "hello seattle".
* "new moon" soundtrack. i loved the "twilight" soundtrack so had high expectations for this one. i'd have to say that i'm quite pleased with what's on here. my favorite track on the album is the new killers song: "a white demon love song".

i've decided to spice up the training for my marathon by signing up for various half marathons at the right point in my training schedule. but not just any half marathons, my friends, half marathons across europe! as i was reviewing my training plan, i was initially quite disappointed to think that it was going to put a damper into my travel plans. then it occurred to me i can kill two birds with one stone by actually doing my training in different countries. it will make the runs much more exciting too. (i mean i think i can only do so many loops around the parks of london.)

surprisingly, it's not easy to find a calendar of half marathons around europe. i know my googling skills are pretty poor, but i really think there's no good list.

so here's my attempt at creating one. here are some possibilities:
* Barcelona Half Marathon - Feb 14
* Malta Half Marathon - Feb 28
* Bath Half Marathon - Mar 7
* Silverstone Half Marathon - Mar 14
* The Hague Half Marathon (Netherlands) - Mar 14
* Lisbon Half Marathon - Mar 21
* Prague Half Marathon - Mar 27
* Berlin Half Marathon - Mar 28

taking the bus along regent and oxford street tonight, i was greeted with a beautiful spectacle of christmas lights. they've been prepping this for a few weeks now but it truly is amazing to see it all come to life. as if i didn't already love this city and this time of year, putting the two together just makes me giddy with excitement. :D

apparently the turning on of the christmas lights on regent street is quite the to-do. how did i miss that? oh well, maybe next year? ;)

since i don't (yet) have any girl friends here in london, i'm turning to my friends across the atlantic to help me decide on which boots to buy. i'm looking for a good pair of comfy ugg-like boots (but i don't actually want to gets uggs because (1) everyone has them and (2) they're just really expensive). i'm also looking for a funky pair of wellies. seems like the british thing to do, don't you think?

so ladies, i'm opening this up for comments. here's what i'm thinking of getting:

a:

or

b:

or

c: both!

(by the way, i've tried both of these on and they are suuuuuper comfy.)

as for the wellies, i'm considering:

d:

or

e:

or

f:


ok, seriously, please feel free to let me know what you think. (gentlemen, you're welcome to comment as well.)